Coco Gauff wins in straight sets at Australian Open, into 4th round

MELBOURNE, Australia — Fourth-seeded American Coco Gauff advanced to the round of 16 at the Australian Open on Friday, beating Alycia Parks 6-0, 6-2.

Gauff played a near-flawless match in beating Parks in 61 minutes, committing only eight unforced errors compared to 34 for her less experienced opponent.

Gauff, 19, has now won ten consecutive major matches, tying Serena Williams for third longest streaks by an American teenager in the open era.

Meanwhile, defending champion Aryna Sabalenka also reached the fourth round with a 6-0, 6-0 demolition of Lesia Tsurenko.

The second-seeded Belarusian, who won her first Grand Slam title here 12 months ago, needed just 52 minutes to win at Rod Laver Arena. She has only lost six matches in three rounds so far.

“Last year, Iga [Swiatek] I've won so many sets 6-0, and that's one of the goals, to try to get closer to her,” Sabalenka joked. “I'm just super happy with the level I'm playing at so far. I hope I can continue like this or even better.”

The two men did not shake hands – as is the case for Ukrainian players against Russian or Belarusian opponents – but Tsurenko verbally congratulated Sabalenka.

It was the first 6-0, 6-0 victory of Sabalenka's career. The last 6-0, 6-0 match at a major was Williams' victory over Carla Suarez Navarro in the quarterfinals at the 2013 US Open, according to research from ESPN Stats & Information.

It was the 11th 6-0, 6-0 victory in a major tournament.

Sabalenka will face Amanda Anisimova, who continued her comeback with a 7-5, 6-4 victory over Paula Badosa. Anisimova, who took seven months off last year for mental health reasons, scored 40 winners en route to the fourth round.

“It’s pretty incredible,” said the American. “Of course, stepping away from the game…gave me a new perspective. I try to be in the present. I think in the past I was too absorbed in the past and the future.”

Sabalenka said she expects a tough battle against Anisimova, who has won four of her five matches.

“She’s an incredible player and I’m really happy to see her again,” Sabalenka said.

Mirra Andreeva, 16, continued her remarkable Australian Open debut by coming back from 5-1 down in the final set to beat France's Diane Parry 1-6, 6-1, 7-6 (5).

The Russian player was in tears as she was a match away from defeat, but she staged a brilliant comeback, saving a match point at 2-5 before winning the deciding tie-break 10-5.

Andreeva is the youngest player to make two major round of 16 appearances since Gauff, then 15, accomplished the feat at the 2020 Australian Open.

Marta Kostyuk is also in the round of 16 after beating Elina Avanesyan, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4, while Magdalena Frech def. Anastasia Zakharova, 4-6, 7-5, 6-4.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.